Three Homes, An Island ParadiseAlpacas at Winterbrook Farm is located on Vashon Island, an hour from downtown Seattle, by way of a scenic ferry ride. Formerly just Winterbrook Farm, it was founded in 1892, originally as a homestead of 160 acres; granted free to the first family/farmers by the US government. Since that date Winterbrook has been a working farm; although, through the years, parts of the farm were sold as the population on the island grew.  Our family bought the farm in 1998, 106 years after the first homestead deed was recorded. We are now operating the farm on 13 acres of rolling pasture and forested land. Since there are three houses on the property, my vision was to make one of the homes available to each of my daughters and occupy the third home: a family compound on this peaceful and beautiful island.
The main house, a Victorian which was featured in Northwest Living Magazine, was built in 1892. I'm live in this home. The second house is actually a barn that has been converted into a charming home, and is occupied by oldest daughter, Angela (our alpaca breeding and fleece products manager); and my beautiful grandchildren, Phillip and Isadora. Fly and Zip, the amazing border collies, also live with them. My younger daughter, Aimee, has a theater degree from the theater conservatory at Webster University in St. Louis, and a Masters Degree in acting from New York University. Aimee is living in the San Francisco Bay Area; enjoying her life as a newlywed homeowner with her husband Gerrit, and pursuing her career as a Theatrical Director. Although their home and careers are in "the big city", Aimee and Gerrit (whose post-graduate degree is in Agricultural Engineering) both love the farm and they visit us often. The third home on the property was originally the farm manager's residence. Since Aimee has chosen not to live on the farm, we found another function for this home. We call it the Log Cabin. It is fully furnished and offered as a short term vacation rental and guest house for people who want to watch or participate in an alpaca farm operation; or simply for folks who want to spend a few days (or a couple of weeks) in the peace and serenity that is our working farm. Arrange a Visit!Call or email us to arrange a visit. The Log Cabin runs full much of the summer, so, if you're planning to spend the night or a few nights, please make reservations early enough to get the dates you most desire. We love to show off our animals, but because this is a working farm, we do need you make an appointment to visit in advance. We'll do our best to accommodate you! |
